Everglades/Transcript
Transcript Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby Tim and Moby stand on a deck above wetlands. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Oh yeah, the Everglades are one of the most unique areas in the world. There's all sorts of wildlife, like herons, foxes, and alligators. MOBY: Beep. A flock of birds fly overhead. Moby points to an alligator in the water. It is close to the deck. TIM: Right, like that one. I mean, Aaagh! The alligator looks up at Tim as Tim gasps. The alligator spits out a letter that Tim catches. Tim reads from the typed letter. TIM: Dear Tim and Moby, I went on a field trip to the Everglades. Could you tell me more about it? From, Ariel. Hmm, I guess that's how they deliver mail around here. Anyway, Ariel, the Everglades is one of the world's largest wetlands. An image shows an aerial view of the Everglades. TIM: That's an area where the soil is completely soaked with water, either year-round or seasonally. An image shows a cross section of water, plants, and soil in the Everglades. TIM: It's located in southern Florida and covers more than 4,000 square miles! A map of Florida shows the Everglades area in southern Florida. TIM: Much of the Everglades is a slow-moving river, but it also includes swamps, coastal islands, and lots of other ecosystems. An animation and images show what Tim describes. The slow-moving river is bordered by tall grasses. The swamp has large trees in it with their roots exposed. The coastal island has dense foliage. TIM: In fact, before south Florida became heavily populated in the twentieth century, the Everglades took up one-third of the state! MOBY: Beep. TIM: It all starts in central Florida, near Orlando. There the Kissimmee River flows southward into Lake Okeechobee. An animation shows these areas on a map of Florida. TIM: This enormous lake takes up hundreds of square miles, but it's only about 9 feet deep. An animation shows Lake Okeechobee. TIM: At certain times of year, it overflows its banks and becomes a long, snaking river that stretches all the way to the southern tip of Florida. An animation shows the lake overflowing and branching out to the east, south, and west. TIM: The Everglades are often called the River of Grass because much of the area is marshland filled with a plant called sawgrass. The edges of each blade have sharp little ridges, kind of like the teeth of a saw. Images show sawgrass in a river and a close-up of a blade of sawgrass, with a row of tiny points along each edge. TIM: Other parts of the Everglades have deeper water, and very little grass. An image shows lily pads and flowers in a river. TIM: But it's not all submerged. Islands called hammocks rise up from the water throughout the Everglades. At higher elevations, the soil gets dry enough for pine forests to grow. An image shows a hammock that has dense bushes and several trees. A second image shows pine trees. TIM: And in coastal areas, where fresh and saltwater mix, there are mangrove forests. The trees there have extensive root systems, which often grow above the water level. An image shows a mangrove forest. The roots of the trees are partly in water and partly above water, and some tree branches also reach toward the water. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Actually, there are only two seasons in the Everglades: wet and dry. The wet season lasts basically from summer through fall, while the dry season occurs in winter and spring. During the dry season, birds from all over the planet come to nest and lay their eggs in the Everglades. These birds are among the remarkable collection of animals that call the Everglades home. An animation shows a bird and chicks in a nest on a tree branch. In the distance are other birds in nests. TIM: There are also Florida panthers, one of the most endangered species in the entire United States; manatees, gentle aquatic mammals that look like big seals; and alligators and crocodiles, which can grow up to fifteen feet long! Images show the animals Tim describes. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Believe it or not, some people call the Everglades home, too! During the nineteenth century, the Seminole Indians retreated there to avoid being conquered by white Americans. Today, many of their descendants still live in and around the Glades. An image shows Seminole women and a child in a small boat. TIM: But these wetlands are important to everyone in South Florida. Just beneath the surface of the Everglades lies a huge aquifer. This underground river provides fresh water to millions of Floridians, and it all comes from the rivers and marshes above. An animation shows the aquifer in a cross section. At the top is the surface water, then two layers of earth, and then the aquifer water below the soil. A pump draws water from the aquifer up to the surface. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Unfortunately, for much of the past century, people concentrated on draining the Everglades to make way for farms and communities. An image of a river and sawgrass in the Everglades fades to an animation of sailboats with a city's skyline behind them. TIM: About half of the entire region came under development. An animation shows a bulldozer shoveling up land in the Everglades. In the background, a building is under construction. TIM: But as environmental awareness grew, people started protecting this unique habitat. First, about sixty years ago, the federal government set aside one and a half million acres of land as Everglades National Park. A map shows Everglades National Park in southern Florida. TIM: And beginning in the 1970s, the state of Florida began buying up land to make sure no one developed it. In addition to these conservation efforts, people are working to restore damaged areas. Millions of dollars have been spent to clean up water polluted by farms and cities. And many people donate their time to rid the Everglades of invasive species: organisms that aren't native to the area and threaten those that are. Images show a water purification plant and a gloved person handling a Burmese python. TIM: Everyone wants to make sure the Everglades are around for generations to come. MOBY: Beep. Moby gives Tim a thumbs up. TIM: Well, I'm glad that makes you happy. TIM: And I'm, uh, happy for you, too? An alligator is standing next to Tim on the deck. It gives Tim a thumbs up. Category:BrainPOP Transcripts